Determination of residence time and mixing processes of the Ubatuba,Brazil, inner shelf waters using natural Ra isotopes

Coastal waters contain elevated dissolved activities of short-lived radium isotopes, ²²³Ra and ²²⁴Ra, having half-lives of 11.4 and 3.66 days, respectively. The input of these isotopes near the coast must be balanced by decay and mixing into the open ocean, where excess activities are zero. Since the decay rate is known, in the ideal case the mixing rate may be determined from the offshore distribution of these isotopes. This study found that samples collected in June 2000 followed the expected exponential decrease with distance offshore. We assign a dispersion coefficient of 28–39 m² s⁻¹ for this study. During January 2002 and November 2003, there was not a consistent decrease of activity with distance offshore. This is likely due to the ruggedness of the coastline, where many bays and small islands interrupt simple mixing patterns. To estimate exchange rates during 2002 and 2003, we used a model based on the decrease in the ²²⁴Ra/²²³Ra activity ratio (AR) with time for samples isolated from fresh inputs of Ra. This model yielded residence times of 1–2 weeks for samples collected within 20 km of the coast. We used this residence time to calculate the flux of ²²⁸Ra (half-life = 5.7 years) to the study area necessary to maintain the enrichment relative to ocean water. This enrichment is a factor of ten greater than the flux of ²²⁸Ra expected from submarine groundwater discharge (SGD) occurring within 50 m of shore.     

The onset of fish colonization in a coastal defence structure (Chioggia,Northern Adriatic Sea)

Coastal defence structures constitute the most extensive hard substrates of the Northwestern Adriatic Sea and are known to sustain rich benthic and nektonic communities. To appreciate the pattern of colonization, we studied the fish assemblage of a recently deployed breakwater. We compared observations from two years, the different sides (landward and seaward) of the barrier, and the two fringes, characterized by timing of work completion. The results indicate that colonization, still in process, follows different patterns among species. Benthic and necto-benthic species presented a striking increase in abundance and richness in the second year of colonization, while more mobile species did not evince any variation between years. Differences in mobility among species suggest that the latter group may have reached the breakwater from nearby artificial substrates, whereas the former colonized the new structure as recruits. In addition, fish assemblages differed between the two sides, likely due to variation in the environmental characteristics, and according to depth, reflecting species preferences.     

Evaluation of policy options for the live reef food fish trade in the province of Palawan,Western Philippines

The live reef food fish (LRFF) trade has an estimated annual retail value of US$1 billion in the Asia-Pacific region and at least US$30 million in the Philippines. Palawan Province is the trade's center accounting for as much as 55% of the commodity's total export. Concern about the LRFF trade has caused the Palawan Provincial government to take action to regulate the trade. Four key policy options to address the short-term policy objective of developing a sustainable LRFF industry through the reduction of threats associated with destructive fishing and overfishing were proposed. These four policy options and associated analyses were presented to stakeholders at three separate policy consultations. The stakeholders reached a consensus that a regulated LRFF trade was the most sensible option. As a result, the Provincial Government of Palawan took action to enact “The Palawan Live Reef Fish Ordinance of 2006”, which provides for the sustainable and integrated regulation of the LRFF industry. This provincial ordinance will assist in crafting a national policy for the LRFF trade and may also be useful in revising the 1998 Philippine Fisheries Code. The key challenge is how to translate the ordinance provisions into effective on-the-ground actions.     

A comparison of economic performance in the fisheries sector: A short- and long-term perspective

Indicators of the economic performance of fishing vessels are frequently computed in various countries. In this paper, we use different types of information to assess capital value and the economic performance of fishing vessels. On the one hand, field surveys provide technical and financial information on the main components of fishing capital. On the other hand, book values are given in bookkeeping databases. We use both sources of information on fishing capital are used for the same set of vessels, namely the commercial fishing fleet of the French region of Brittany. Based on these two sources, measures of economic performance can be produced for the short term using gross surplus; and for the long term including the cost of capital. The measures of performance obtained are presented and the differences between them are then discussed.     

Discussion of “A simple method to determine breaker height and depth for different deepwater wave height/length ratios and sea floor slopes”, by J.P. Le Roux [Coastal Engineering 54 (2007) 271–277]

In the recent paper by J.P. Le Roux [Coastal Engineering 54 (2007) 271–277], the author provides a simplified approach to calculating the depth, length, and height of waves at the onset of depth-induced breaking (i.e. at the breaker line). However, the proposed methodology and the comparisons to other methods suffer from a large number of inconsistencies and basic calculation errors. In addition, there are a number of erroneous physical interpretations and many of the conclusions are based on erroneous data. The remaining conclusions are either not new or based on circular logic, such as to render them moot. In the following, we will not attempt to point out all the errors or inconsistencies that we found, instead we focus on major points of contention.     

Direct determination of tidal levels for engineering applications based on biological observations

The scarcity of tide gauges in a global scale and the variability of the tidal levels along contiguous coasts mainly due to changing hydrographic conditions make the determination of tidal levels, especially of the Mean Sea Level, not an easy task. Determination of such levels with a precision of about 10 cm, necessary for most coastal engineering works, is usually based on records of temporary tide gauges or on geomorphological techniques. In this paper we present an alternative approach permitting to accurately identify tidal levels with a precision suitable for civil engineering applications based on biological observations on rocky shores, including breakwaters and quays. More specifically, we present evidence that the biological zonation, i.e. the distribution of coastal species in well-defined sub-horizontal belts, is practically insensitive to seasonal and other small-scale fluctuations of the sea level and is clearly related to certain levels, mostly the Mean Low Water (MLW). This approach, somewhat similar to what has been used in the past (for instance for the determination of the geodetic vertical datum in the Republic of Venice, Italy, till approximately AD 1800), permits direct determination of the Mean Sea Level or of other tidal levels on the basis of biological observations without statistical analyses of tide-gauge records with an accuracy of 5–10 cm, especially in microtidal, low-energy coasts.     

Analysis of second-order resonance in wave interactions with floating bodies through a finite-element method

A time-domain method is employed to analyse the resonant oscillations of the liquid confined within the two floating bodies. The velocity potentials at each time step are obtained through a finite-element method (FEM) with quadratic shape functions. The matrix equation of the FEM is solved through an iteration. The radiation condition is satisfied through a combination of the damping zone method and the Sommerfeld–Orlanski equation. A detailed analysis is made for two rectangular floating cylinders undergoing forced oscillation. The first-order potential reveals the resonant behaviour of the wave motion at certain frequencies ω_i, which is similar to sloshing in a tank. More interestingly, the second-order theory further reveals that when the oscillation frequency is at ω_i/2 or half of the resonant frequency, no first-order resonance is observed as expected, but the second-order resonant motion becomes evident, which does not seem to have been extensively investigated so far. Detailed results for two rectangular cylinders are provided to show some insights into the resonant effect due to the interaction between the bodies. The first- and second-order resonant phenomena have been observed and the result has shown that the second-order components have significant influence on the wave and force in some cases, especially at the second-order resonance.     

Momentum and gravity effects during the constant velocity water entry of wedge-shaped sections

Computational fluid dynamics analysis was used to investigate the added mass momentum, flow momentum and gravity effects during the constant velocity water entry of wedge-shaped sections with deadrise angles from 5° to 45°. It is shown that the added mass continues to increase for a time after chine immersion and that added mass can be estimated in terms of a constant added mass coefficient and an effective wetted width. A momentum theory is presented in which the water entry force is explained as the sum of the rate of change of added mass momentum, which becomes zero at immersion to chine depth ratios greater than about three, and the rate of change of flow momentum, which continues at deep immersions. The effect of gravity on the water entry force is given as the hydrostatic force together with the force necessary to create the potential energy in the water pile up. Hydrodynamic forces are not significantly changed by the effect of gravity on the flow fields.     

1997–1998 El Niño off Peru: A numerical study

An eddy-resolving numerical simulation for the Peru–Chile system between 1993 and 2000 is analyzed, mainly for the 1997–1998 El Niño. Atmospheric and lateral oceanic forcings are realistic and contain a wide range of scales from days to interannual. The solution is validated against altimetric observations and the few in situ observations available. The simulated 1997–1998 El Niño closely resembles the real 1997–1998 El Niño in its time sequence of events. The two well-marked, sea-level peaks in May–June and November–December 1997 are reproduced with amplitudes close to those observed. Other sub-periods of the El Niño seem to be captured adequately. Simple dynamical analyses are performed to explain the 1997–1998 evolution of the upwelling in the model. The intensity of the upwelling appears to be determined by an interplay between alongshore, poleward advection (related to coastal trapped waves) and wind intensity, but also by the cross-shore geostrophic flow and distribution of the water masses on a scale of 1000 km or more (involving Rossby waves westward propagation and advection from equatorial currents). In particular, the delay of upwelling recovery until fall 1998 (i.e., well after the second El Niño peak) is partly due to the persistent advection of offshore stratified water toward the coast of Peru. Altimetry data suggest that these interpretations of the numerical solution also apply to the real ocean.